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Judges : T.V.RAMAKRISHNAN,A.S.VENKATACHALA MOORTHY
Manager, St.Francis H.S. - Appellant
Versus
Deputy Director - Respondent
Case No : W.A. No. 862 of 1990
Decided On : 12/10/1997
Advocates Appeared :
E. Subramani For Appellant Government Pleader (Jose Thettayil) & P. Sankarankutty Nair For Respondents
Deputy Director of Education - Withholding Maintenance Grant - Chapter XXVIII of Kerala Education Rules - The Deputy Director has no authority to pass the impugned order as per R.2 of Chapter XXVIII of the Kerala Education Rules and R.5A of Chapter XXVIII. The impugned order is quashed due to violation of principles of natural justice.
Fact of the Case:
The Deputy Director of Education issued a show cause notice to the Manager of a school for failing to reinstate certain teachers and for irregular retention of others. The Deputy Director later passed an order withholding the maintenance grant due to the Manager, which was challenged by the Manager in a writ petition.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the Deputy Director had no authority to pass the impugned order as per the relevant rules and that there was a violation of principles of natural justice in passing the order.
Issues: The issues raised were the competence of the Deputy Director to pass the impugned order and the violation of principles of natural justice in doing so.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the Deputy Director had no authority to pass the impugned order as per the relevant rules and that there was a violation of principles of natural justice in passing the order.
Final Decision: The Writ Appeal was allowed, and the impugned order was quashed. The court clarified that it was open to the authorities to take further permissible action as per the relevant Act and Rules, and the appellant could raise all available defenses in law.
A.S. Venkatachala Moorthy, J.
The above appeal has been filed by the unsuccessful petitioner in O.P. No. 1449 of 1989 against the order of dismissal of O.P. by a learned single judge op 22.8.1990.
2. It would not be necessary to traverse through the entire facts of this case in detail in view of the nature of issues that arise for consideration by this Court.
3. The Deputy Director of Education, Trichur taking the view that the Manager, St. Francis High School (Boys and Girls) Mattom, the appellant herein, miserably failed to carry out the departmental instructions, ie., the failure to order reinstatement of Smt. P.B. Sobha, Smt. P.N. Komalavally and Smt. C.R. Annamma, and retention of some others without observing the subject requirements as per the rules in Kerala Education Rules, issued a show cause notice dated 5.7.1988 setting out the charges and calling upon the appellant to send a reply within 15 days from the date of receipt of the notice. The relevant portion in the said show cause notice may be usefully extracted here:
"In short, instead of ordering the reinstatement of Smt. P.B. Sobha and Smt. P.N. Komalavally with effect from 15.7.81 and Smt. C.R. Annamma from 1.12.81 you have deliberately disobeyed and delayed the implementation of the departmental orders issued from time to time. So, it is decided to proceed with disciplinary action against you for the gross violation of departmental orders as contemplated in R.7 of Chapter III K.E.R. for the various charges mentioned above. If you have anything to offer as a reply to the show cause notice, you are allowed 15 days time from the receipt of this notice. If nothing is heard from you within the time limit suitable action will be proceeded in the matter without further notice."
4. The appellant sent a detailed reply dated 28th July 1988 to the said show cause notice setting out his case and requesting the Deputy Director of Education to set aside the charges against the then Manger and quash the charges in the light of the explanation offered. In the said explanation he has stated that he took over charge as Manager only with effect from 19.3.1988 and that Rev. Fr. Antony Ainikkal was the Manager when the retrenchment and retention of the petitioners in the O.P. took place in 1981- 82.
5. The Deputy Director of Education, Trichur after considering the explanation to the show cause notice passed order dated 16.12.1988 which has been marked as Ext P4 to the effect that the Manager may not be proceeded against, as the Manager responsible for the irregularities has since quitted the office as Manager and a new Manager has taken charge as such. Taking that view the Deputy Director passed the following order:
"But the above course of action will not be a bar for the 2nd respondent to go on with question of payment of salary to the petitioners in conformity with the directions in the said judgment. He will see that the claims for salary of the three petitioners based on the directions in the judgment are settled urgently and the amount of salary so paid to them is recovered from the amount of maintenance grant due to the Manager, St. Francis High School (Boys & Girls), Mattom, or otherwise with the approval of the authority competent in this regard."
6. The appellant filed O.P. No. 1449 of 1989 on the file of this Court under Art.226 of the Constitution of India praying this court to issue a writ of certiorari to call for the records leading upto Ext. P4 of the first respondent and quash the same to the extent of directing recovery from the maintenance grant due to the petitioner, as Manager of St. Francis High School (Boys & Girls) and further restraining the respondents from ordering any recovery from the amount of maintenance grant due to the petitioner as Manager of the said school pursuant to Ext. P4 order of the first respondent.
7. Before the learned Single Judge the appellant/ petitioner mainly raised two fold contentions, (1) that the Deputy Director is not compe
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